★★★★★ Dawson states that the premise for his creation is about, “hope and humanity, about finding light in the darkness”. And he succeeds mostly because of the sheer beauty of the dancing, the shapes and patterns the dancers make...
Author - Deborah Weiss
Birmingham Royal Ballet's new Nutcracker streaming is very much about investing in company and student dancers (from the Royal Ballet School and Elmhurst Ballet School) at the most difficult of times for the performing arts.
★★★★★ One of many striking things about Marcia Haydée’s production of The Sleeping Beauty is that although it premiered on 10 May 1987, it still looks fresh and current and could have been created within the last couple of years.
★★★★★ That BRB managed to get this on at all is a small miracle - and the undiminished determination with which the dancers attack their work inspires passion in us all.
★★★✰✰ Wayne McGregor’s first full-length creation for the Royal Ballet, Woolf Works, inspired by Virginia Woolf, remains one of his best works to date.
With one common factor, music by Igor Stravinsky, Scottish Ballet (SB) deliver two excellent and very contrasting performances which were filmed at the Festival Theatre, Edinburgh in 2017.
★★★★★ If you want an antidote to any miserable lockdown mood, La Fille mal gardée cannot fail to lift your spirits and allow you to marvel at some really first-rate dancing.
Marianela Núñez talks about one of her favourite ballets, "La Fille mal gardée", and life under lockdown, which for Marianela has been in Argentina. "La Fille mal gardee", one of the most loved works in the Royal Ballet repertoire, streams this Friday, 12 June, from 19:00 BST
★★★★✰ Cathy Marston has achieved much in bringing the life of Jacqueline du Pré to the ballet stage and perhaps one of the things that becomes even clearer with repeated viewings, is that the music and the dance are inextricably linked.
"If you missed 'Men at the Barre - Inside the Royal Ballet': a look behind the scenes at the male ballet dancers in the company, then do take the time to catch up on BBC iPlayer."
★★★✰✰ I do wonder why ENB chose this particular (acceptable but sometimes subdued) recording to stream, when we are all suffering from live performance withdrawal symptoms and this company so often produces spectacular performances, sending audiences away in raptures.
★★★★✰ Osipova inhabits the role of Anna Anderson with gruelling sincerity. She appears deranged from the beginning with close-up camera angles revealing a depth of despair that is tremendously affecting.
★★★★✰ It doesn’t get much steamier than Matthew Bourne’s The Car Man, the third of his productions to be presented and screened on Sky Arts during lockdown.
★★★★✰ Performances across the board are stupendous, reminding us that interpretations evolve and change, and do not disappoint.
Feature – Ashton Rediscovered Masterclass: Voices of Spring, coached by Merle Park and Wayne Eagling
For anyone with an interest in the machinations of bringing a difficult pas de deux to performance standard, this was an experience to cherish.
★★★★✰ For those of us that have been involved with the company, no matter how small a part, it is clear that the ‘happy family’ that is English National Ballet, reveres and appreciates all who have been part of its 70 year existence.
★★★★✰ In spite of all the problems with performing a proscenium arch ballet in an arena setting with a purpose-built stage, it is no less magical than any other production and in some ways, it works advantageously.
★★✰✰✰ There was certainly some spectacle and some good dancing, and not just from the big stars. However, the most heavily promoted piece and world premiere was an excruciating fifteen minutes of disappointment...
Le Ballet de L’Opéra national du Rhin – Ballet du Rhin Les Beaux dormants (The Sleeping Beauties) ★★★✰✰ London, Linbury Theatre, Royal Opera House, 21 November 2019 Gallery of pictures by Foteini Christofilopoulou www.operanationaldurhin.eu www.roh.org.uk It was quite an experience to watch the extraordinary dancers of Le Ballet de L’Opéra national du Rhin, pace their way through Hélène...
★★★✰✰ Absolutely first rate dancing with rather mixed choreography...